Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on CASY. Evercore set a $665.00 target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Zacks Research cut shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Casey’s General Stores from $610.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Friday, January 9th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $621.00.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Performance

Shares of Casey’s General Stores stock opened at $685.59 on Monday. Casey’s General Stores has a 52 week low of $372.08 and a 52 week high of $690.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $621.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $568.80. The company has a market cap of $25.41 billion, a PE ratio of 42.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.65.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $5.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.92 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $4.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.51 billion. Casey’s General Stores had a return on equity of 16.89% and a net margin of 3.58%.Casey’s General Stores’s revenue was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.85 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Casey’s General Stores will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Moats Maria Castanon acquired 300 shares of Casey’s General Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, January 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $554.66 per share, with a total value of $166,398.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $445,391.98. This trade represents a 59.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Casey’s General Stores in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division grew its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 52.8% during the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 55 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 350.0% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 54 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nvwm LLC bought a new position in shares of Casey’s General Stores in the second quarter worth $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.63% of the company’s stock.

About Casey’s General Stores

Casey’s General Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: CASY) is a U.S.-based convenience store chain that operates retail fuel stations and food-focused convenience outlets. Founded in 1959 in Boone, Iowa, the company has grown from a single neighborhood store into a regional operator known for combining traditional convenience retailing—fuel, packaged goods and tobacco—with a larger emphasis on fresh and prepared foods.

The company’s stores typically offer gasoline and diesel alongside a range of grocery essentials, grab-and-go items and made-to-order foodservice.